KUCI: Film School

Life Overtakes Me / Film School Radio interview with Co-directors John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson

LIFE OVERTAKES ME tells the story of traumatized children of the refugee diaspora who are in such profound despair that they withdraw into a coma-like state. in Sweden, over 400 refugee children have been afflicted with this life-threatening psychosomatic illness, and the film will accompany two of them and their families on their frightening odyssey through Resignation Syndrome.
Directors Biographies: producers/Directors John Haptas and Kristine Samuelson make documentary essays. their films have addressed such disparate subjects as tourism in Paris, the Vietnam War, and homelessness, and have screened at festivals worldwide, from Sundance and San Francisco to Leipzig, Sao Paulo, and Seoul, and have appeared on PBS and at museums including NY MOMA. their recent film Tokyo Waka premiered theatrically at Film Forum in New York. their work has been supported by artist fellowships from the Bogliasco Foundation, the Cité Internationale Des Arts in Paris, the Victoria College of Art in Melbourne, the Japan-U.S. Friendship commission, and the California Arts Council. Samuelson taught in the Documentary Film and Video M.F.A. program at Stanford University for thirty years, serving as program Director for ten years. She was nominated for an academy award for Arthur and Lillie and is a member of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Haptas is a freelance documentary editor.
Awards:
Full Frame Audience Award - Short
Festivals/Screenings:
Sundance Film Festival, Full Frame Film Festival

Walk Run Cha Cha / Film School Radio interview with Director Laura Nix

*** 2020 Oscar nomination for Best Documentary (Short)
WALK RUN CHA-CHA has been nominated for Documentary Short Subject at the 92nd Academy Awards®. Directed by Laura Nix, the film follows Paul and Millie Cao, who lost their youth to the aftermath of the Vietnam War. Forty years later, they have become successful professionals in Southern California-and are rediscovering themselves on the dance floor. WALK RUN CHA CHA is now streaming on New York Times Op-Docs.
About the Filmmaker: Director Laura Nix Laura Nix is an award-winning fiction and nonfiction filmmaker based in Los Angeles. WALK RUN CHA-CHA is adapted from a feature-length documentary in progress. It was produced by Concordia Studio for The New York Times Op-Docs and premiered at the 2019 Tribeca Film Festival. Laura’s work also includes  other work includes her feature documentary INVENTING TOMORROW, about teenagers from around the globe tackling environmental issues through science,  THE YES MEN ARE REVOLTING, a comedy about activism and climate change, the documentary THE LIGHT IN HER EYES, about a Syrian Qur’an school for women and she was a writer on the Emmy-nominated documentary CALIFORNIA STATE OF MIND: THE LEGACY OF PAT BROWN. In 2001, Nix co-founded the production company Automat Pictures, where she produced and/or directed over 100 presentations, including the feature documentary WHETHER YOU LIKE IT OR NOT: THE STORY OF HEDWIG, which played in over a dozen film festivals in the U.S. and worldwide. Previously she was a member of Oscar-winning filmmakers Rob Epstein and Jeffrey Friedman’s production company Telling Pictures, where she was Associate Producer on THE CELLULOID CLOSET.
For news and updates go to: feltfilms.com
Walk Run Cha Cha is now available at nytimes.com/Op-Docs
*** 2020 Oscar nomination for Best Documentary (Short) *** 

A Sister / Film School Radio interview with Delphine Girard

A night. A car. Alie is in trouble. To get by she must make the most important call of her life. An emergency services dispatcher must tap into all her professional skills when she receives a call from a woman in a desperate situation.
About the filmmaker: Born in the heart of the French-Canadian winter, Delphine Girard moved to Belgium a few years later. after starting her studies as an actress, she transferred to the directing department at the iNSaS in Brussels. her graduation film, MONSTRE, won several awards in Belgium and around the world. after leaving the school, she worked on several films as an assistant director, children’s coach or casting director (“Our children” by Joachim Lafosse, “Mothers’ instinct” by Olivier Masset-Depasse) while writing and directing the short film CAVERNE, adapted from a short story by the American author holly Goddard Jones. A SISTER is her second short film. She is currently working on her first feature and a fiction series.
For news and updates go to: A Sister/delphine-girard
Awards:
Jury Prize – Saguenay IFF (Canada)
Grand Prize Rhode Island IFF (USA)
Best International Short Film Sulmona IFF (Italy)
Grand Prize Jury SPASM Festival (Canada)
Best Short Film, Public Prize, Be tv Prize, University of Namur Prize – Namur Film Festival (Belgium) Public Prize & Special mention by press – BSFF (Belgium)

SARIA / Film School Radio interview with Director Bryan Buckley

SARIA explores the unimaginable hardships faced by young female orphans at the Virgen de La Asuncion Safe Home in Guatemala, leading up to the tragic fire which claimed 41 of their lives in 2017. We follow the story of two inseparable orphaned sisters - Saria 12, and her sister Ximena 14, as they fight against mounting daily physical abuse at the very institution designed to protect them. In the sisters' desperation for survival, they devise a daring plan of escape for all the orphans to find freedom in America. SARIA is premiering at the 2020 Oscar Shorts.
Director’s Biography: the New York times has dubbed Oscar-Nominee Bryan Buckley the "king of the Super Bowl,” having directed over 60 commercials for the big game since 2000. in 2013, Buckley wrote and directed the short film ASAD, which received an academy award nomination for “Best live action Short Film” and was cited by archbishop Desmund Tutu in a speech as having helped stem xenophobia in his country. Buckley then followed up his short with two feature films - the 2015 Sundance Film Festival opener, THE BRONZE, and THE PIRATES OF SOMALIA, which had its world premiere at the 2017 Tribeca Film Festival. A 2010 Adweek Readers Poll named Buckley the commercial Director of the Decade - he was also named one of the 50 best Creative Minds in the last 25 years by Creativity Magazine. Buckley is an esteemed recipient of the DGA award, multiple Emmys, and over 50 Cannes lions. Most recently, he won the 2019 Cannes Grand prix for his work on MARCH FOR OUR LIVES “GENERATION LOCKDOWN,” done in support of the S.42 Background Check Expansion Act.

NEFTA Football Club / Film School Radio interview with Director Yves Piat

Two young brothers come across a donkey in the desert. Strangely, the animal is wearing headphones over its ears.
Director’s Biography: Yves Piat discovered the world of cinema through his technician work as a decorator and studio manager on set. he developed the Nefta Football club story by mixing a personal experience coming from his childhood and his observations after several journeys in South Morocco. Awards:
Cinemed, Festival Cinéma Méditerranéen Montpellier - Prix du Public La Gazette - France (2018)
Cinemed, Festival Cinéma Méditerranéen Montpellier - Mention Spéciale - France (2018)
Bucharest Short Film Festival - Best Screenplay - Romania (2018)
Un poing c’est court, Festival du Film Court Francophone de Vaulx-en-Velin - Prix des Jeunes - France (2019)
Festival international du court métrage de Clermont-Ferrand - Prix du Public - France (2019)
11mm - Int. Football Film Festival Berlin - Best Short Film Award - Germany (2019)
Festival Européen du Court-Métrage de Bordeaux - Prix SensCritique - France (2019)
Festival Européen du Court-Métrage de Bordeaux - Prix du Jury Étudiants - France (2019)
Aspen Shortsfest - Best Comedy - USA (2019)
Aspen Shortsfest - Public Prize - USA (2019)
Ce n’est pas la taille qui compte - Prix du Public - FRANCE (2019)
Florida Film Festival - Audience Award - USA (2019)
Cyprus Comic Con Film Festival - International Prize - Cyprus (2019)

Brotherhood / Film School Radio interview with Director Meryam Joobeur

Mohamed is a hardened shepherd living in rural Tunisia with his wife and two sons. Mohamed is deeply shaken when his oldest son Malik returns home after a long journey with a mysterious new wife. tension between father and son rises over three days until reaching a breaking point.
Director’s Biography: Tunisian-American writer/director Meryam Joobeur is a graduate of Mel Hoppenheim School of Cinema in Montréal. She is currently developing three feature films including the feature version of BROTHERHOOD and has participated in the Berlinale Talent Lab (2016) TiFF Talent Lab (2016) and the Rawi Screenwriter’s Lab (2016).
** 2020 Academy Award nominee for Best Live Action Short

Bastards’ Road / Film School Radio interview with Director Brian Morrison

BASTARDS’ ROAD tells the story of the many combat veterans, like Jon Hancock who are navigating the complicated transition back to civilian life. After years of struggling, Jon decided to take an epic journey across the country - on foot. Walking nearly 6,000 miles alone, Jon confronts the demons that had overtaken his life. Visiting his fellow 2/4 Marines - known as the The Magnificent Bastards - and families of their fallen along the way, Jon finds a mission greater than his own redemption. Veterans everywhere are struggling with PTSD. They are taking their own lives at an alarming rate - 50% higher than non-veterans. With remarkable honesty, insight and humor, Jon’s journey is uniquely positive. It’s about changing the ways one relates to traumatic memories. It’s about beginning the healing process. Director Brian Morrison joins us to talk about the raw emotions and the deep pain of men and woman who have done what their country asked them to do.
For news and updates go to: bastardsroad.com
Social Media
facebook.com/bastardsroad
instagram.com/bastardsroadmovie

The Neighbors Window / FIlm School Radio interview with Director Marshall Curry

THE NEIGHBORS’ WINDOW tells the story of Alli (Maria Dizzia), a mother of young children who has grown frustrated with her daily routine and husband (Greg eller). But her life is shaken up when two free-spirited twenty-somethings move in across the street and she discovers that she can see into their apartment. Inspired by a true story, the film was written and directed by three-time Oscar-nominated documentary filmmaker, Marshall curry. Starring tony-nominated Maria Dizzia (Orange is the New Black, 13 Reasons Why, White We’re Young); Greg Keller (Law and Order); and Juliana Canfield (Succession).
About the filmmaker: Marshall Curry is a three-time academy award nominated documentary director, cinematographer, and editor. his films cover a wide range of interests and include STREET FIGHT, about cory Booker's first run for mayor of Newark, N.J.; RACING DREAMS, which tells the story of two boys and a girl who dream of becoming NaScaR drivers; IF A TREE FALLS: A STORY OF THE EARTH LIBERATION FRONT, which chronicles a radical environmental group; POINT AND SHOOT, about an american who leaves home to join the libyan revolution; and A NIGHT AT THE GARDEN, about a Nazi rally that filled Madison Square Garden in 1939. his films have won top honors at Sundance and tribeca, played in theaters and on television around the world, and earned two Emmy nominations and two Writers Guild of america nominations. curry also Executive produced and helped to edit MISTAKEN FOR STRANGERS, a comedy documentary about the indie rock band, the National.
For news and updates go to: theneighborswindow.com
For more about the work of Marshall Curry go to: marshallcurry.com
Watch: The Neighbors’ Window
Social Media
twitter.com/marshallcurry
twitter.com/neighbrswindow

Ask No Questions / Film School Radio interview with Director Jason Loftus

In ASK NO QUESTIONS Chinese State TV blames his faith for a fiery public suicide, Chen Ruichang is detained in a Clockwork Orange-style brainwashing facility and forced to accept the government’s account. But Chen, a former insider of the state TV himself, believes it was all a government plot. A CNN reporter smuggled out footage of the event that day, but was then muzzled by Beijing. Now, her eyewitness testimony helps untangle an intricate conspiracy, as Chinese authorities begin pressuring the filmmaker’s family and business associates. The terrifying danger of a government nefariously crafting the narrative & imprisoning its citizens who practice Falun Gong in China in the gripping feature documentary ASK NO QUESTIONS from filmmakers Jason Loftus (The Bleeding Edge, Human Harvest) and Eric Pedicelli (Black Code, Tin City Voices), which world premieres on Saturday, January 25th. In the vein of a journalistic true crime documentary, painting the scope of the crime, and the depths of the investigation. The story leads into allegations of criminal conduct at a governmental scale. Evidence is credibly presented, shocking, and thorough. Director Jason Loftus stops by for a conversation on the terrifying reach of a totalitarian state power structure and the impact it can have on those who dare challenge it.
For news and updates go to: asknoquestionsfilm.com
Social Media
twitter.com/jasonloftus
Slamdance Competition Documentary Feature Film
Premiere: Saturday, January 25th at 10:30m in the Gallery Screening Room
Second Screening: Wednesday, January 29th at 6pm in the Ballroom Screening Room

Island of the Hungry Ghosts / Film School Radio interview with Director Gabrielle Brady

ISLAND OF THE HUNGRY GHOSTS takes place off the coast of Indonesia, in the Australian territory of Christmas Island, inhabited by migratory crabs traveling in their millions from the jungle towards the ocean, in a movement that has been provoked by the full moon for hundreds of thousands of years. Poh Lin Lee is a “trauma therapist” who lives with her family in this seemingly idyllic paradise. Every day, she talks with the asylum seekers held indefinitely in a high-security detention centre hidden in the island’s core, attempting to support them in a situation that is as unbearable as its outcome is uncertain. As Poh Lin and her family explore the island’s beautiful yet threatening landscape, the local islanders carry out their “hungry ghost” rituals for the spirits of those who died on the island without a burial. They make offerings to appease the lost souls who are said to be wandering the jungles at night looking for home. ISLAND OF THE HUNGRY GHOSTS is a hybrid documentary that moves between the natural migration and the chaotic and tragic migration of the humans, which is in constant metamorphoses by the unseen decision-making structures. Director Gabrielle Brady joins us to talk about her beautiful and quietly powerful tale of desperate people trapped in a place of pervasive uncertainty and a woman trying to help them cope.
For news, screenings and updates go to: christmasislandfilm.com
** 2020 Spirit Award nominee for Best Documentary **
Tribeca Film Festival - Award for best documentary film
Mumbai International Film Festival - Grand Jury Prize for best film
IDFA - Human rights award
Adelaide international Film Festival - Winner best documentary film
Social Media
facebook.com/filmchristmasisland
twitter.com/hashtag/islandofthehungryghosts
instagram.com/islandofthehungryghosts
#islandofthehungryghosts
facebook.com/filmindependent
twitter.com/filmindependent
instagram.com/filmindependent
#spiritawards